StarCrossed: United We Stand
by Katsuko1978
Summary: Life doesn't give you any more challenges than you can handle, but sometimes you can't face them by yourself. Third story in my "Star-Crossed" series. Rating subject to change.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** Transformers © Hasbro**  
Measures of Time: **vorn = 83 years / breem = approx 10 minutes / orn = 14 days / joor = 6.5 hours / cycle = 1 day  
**Notes:** This is, aside from the short stories set in the future, the tamest part of the "Star-Crossed" series. I've been thinking on this 'verse since I wrote the very first story, and in my mind it evolved from a couple of clandestine meetings between enemy soldiers to a full-blown relationship built on affection and respect for one another.

And as it nipped at me, this third story in the series began evolving. This will be the longest section, most likely, and broken up into a minimum of three chapters. I'm already enjoying the chaos that the events of the story will cause for the universe!

* * *

Some risks were worth taking; that had always been Starscream's philosophy towards every action he'd taken in his life thus far. Deep-space exploration hadn't been for the faint of spark, after all, and up until Skyfire's accident it had been fun to push his limitations. The same held true for interfacing; there were mechs and femmes out there who could – and often did – take advantage of his capricious attitude towards the act, but there were still those who treated him with the same manner they would have any other lover in spite of his possessing mirrored protocols and femme hardware.

When he discovered that the Autobot medic he'd been obsessing over for most of the war fell into that latter category, he decided that continuing their impromptu affair was one of those risks worth taking. Apparently Ratchet agreed – there was no other reason to hand over his comm frequency and then actually _meet_ Starscream at the designated coordinates each time the seeker managed to slip away from the base. Close to six Earth months had passed since they started to meet up at least once each week, somehow both able to manage downtime that didn't raise questions, and yet they didn't _always_ interface. Sometimes they just talked, vented about whatever the Pit was annoying them at the time or relaying something that had happened recently. Nothing pertaining to the war was discussed; they weren't an Autobot and a Decepticon during these encounters, they were merely two mechs that wanted to know one another beyond being interface partners.

That was probably why Starscream had even considered the idea in the first place.

Yes, he had had more than a few lovers in his life, but those had been just straight-up interfaces – a little petting, a lot of teasing, and hardware-only. The thought of spark-merging had never even crossed his mind except as something reserved for serious long-term lovers, and he didn't believe that any mech or femme would stick with him for much longer than an orn or two. But as the weeks had slipped into months and the overall tone of their encounters shifted to something _more_, the idea of sharing himself on such a personal level began to look appealing.

What little he knew about merging was that there _were_ no secrets between partners – while a mech could lie to someone he was 'facing, it was impossible to do so when spark-merge was part of the equation – and that it was one of the methods to create a new-spark. Starscream didn't know the statistics on how often spark-merge led to spark-creation (he'd never been bothered since he was a result of a split-spark and fully expected that he would do likewise should the urge to procreate hit him) but decided that he wasn't really bothered by not knowing all the facts for once.

What he _did_ know was that he'd somehow fallen – hard – for an Autobot in spite of himself, and that he _wanted_ to take yet another risk to show it. And the risk had been worth it; for the past two months merges had been integrated into their encounters, and with it came the heady feeling of knowing that the affection he felt was mutual. Not needing to say the words simply because they both already knew what was in the other's spark was liberating, and his own thoughts regarding spark-merge seemed to be well-founded.

The only thing he hadn't expected was his current situation: flying hard and fast away from the Decepticons' undersea base, muting his signal in an attempt to prevent the others from locating him easily. His energy levels had been wildly fluctuating for a few days, nothing to really be concerned about in his thoughts, but when he'd nearly collapsed in the middle of a meeting it had prompted him to see the Constructicons in order to find out what manner of virus he was dealing with.

The results of the scans called for a second opinion, and Starscream had been quick to leave the repair bay and head for open sky. Now he simply had to keep the other 'cons off his trail until he could confirm Hook's scans... and decide what to do next.

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The sudden comm from Starscream, only five cycles after their last rendezvous and nothing more than a set of coordinates not terribly far from the _Ark_, had been unexpected. The fact that it was so abrupt was somewhat troubling, and Ratchet had never been so grateful that it was a slow day in his life; without having to patch up anyone for pulling some ridiculous stunt, he was able to quickly slip away and head for the cliff side that his seeker had indicated.

To be honest, he hadn't expected much more from the affair than what had been there at the start of it: a few good overloads from time to time and the faint thrill that came from the risk of being caught. As time had slipped by, however, the medic realized that he was growing attached to the younger mech far more quickly than with any other he'd shared his berth with – not that they'd managed to sneak any time together in a comfortable berth save for once, and that had been during Starscream's second stay in the brig; thank Primus below that Red Alert had _some_ degree of discretion, even if Ratchet suspected the mech kept copies of the footage for his own purposes – and attempted to turn the overall tone of their meetings to reflect his feelings. Surprisingly enough, the air commander had gone along with the shift in dynamics easily; in fact, he seemed to open up more during their frequent 'facing sessions as a result of time spent simply talking or doing little more than exchanging kisses and light touches.

But the surest sign that the overall dynamic had shifted completely was when Starscream, who never seemed to say anything he didn't mean and was showing signs of truly being the mech that Skyfire had spoken so warmly of, had brought up the possibility of introducing spark-merges into their interfaces. Given that merging was the highest form of intimacy, one shared only between exclusive lovers, it was tantamount to the seeker admitting that he wanted no one but Ratchet. The only surprise there was that it was Starscream and not the medic who'd mentioned the idea first.

He didn't regret it, not in the least. Even given his age and the fact that he had quite a few vorns on his lover – and was that even the best term to use? Merging for them both seemed to mean that they were involved with no other potential lovers, so perhaps _mate_ would be a better term? – Ratchet hadn't spark-shared with anyone except for the seeker. He'd been raised (by two creators, not a singular caregiver as Starscream had had) to feel that such activities were to be shared only with the mech or femme who was the most important being in the universe to him, and somehow he'd found that on the other side of a battlefield in the middle of a seemingly-unending war.

So when he received what amounted to a panicked request to meet as soon as possible, Ratchet was more than willing to drop everything and rush to his lover's side.

He arrived at the rock face fairly quickly, transforming back to root mode only astroseconds before a query ping bounced across his comm link. Recognizing the frequency as Starscream's, the medic sent back a responding alert even as he performed an instinctive sensor sweep of the area. When he realized that his seeker's signature was scrambled, Ratchet dampened his own just in case there was a valid reason for the action. A moment later Starscream landed, stumbling slightly as he transformed; the medic moved forward to steady the younger mech and pull him closer to the cliff wall.

Ratchet took a moment to visually scan the sky, confirming with his optics what his sensor readouts were telling him, before shifting the focus of his attention to the seeker. Starscream looked drained and more than a bit shaken, but other than that there appeared to be nothing physically wrong with the mech. A wave of relief washed over the medbot and he pulled the seeker into a hug, relaxing further when the other mech returned the gesture with a faint hum.

He pulled back just enough to brush a kiss across one gunmetal grey cheek before softly asking, "What's wrong? Your message came across as somewhat urgent."

The seeker hesitated for a moment before replying. "My systems have been off for a few cycles, mostly energy fluxes. I've been ignoring it – don't give me that look!" he interrupted himself, frowning at the disapproving look in his lover's optics. "I didn't think it was anything until I nearly crashed during the morning shift assignments. And _yes_, I went to get a scan immediately afterward."

"Virus?" Ratchet asked, still a little aggravated that the younger mech had willfully ignored his system's warnings that something wasn't functioning properly. He'd almost think that Starscream was frightened of medics if not for the fact that his chosen function seemed to be a turn-on to the seeker.

Another moment of hesitation: "According to Hook's initial scans, all signs point to something else entirely. I didn't give him a chance to do a follow-up, just shot him and took off. He'll be fine; I used the lowest setting on my null ray so he should be back online by now. I just... I couldn't risk being followed immediately if those scans weren't wrong."

The medic frowned, lightly petting one of Starscream's wings as he processed the facts. "Energy fluctuations often indicate viruses; sometimes they just mean that a mech isn't getting proper recharge. You were fine the last time we were together, so the second option can't be the problem..." His words trailed off as a third possibility crossed his processor, given life by his own words and the recollection of just _how_ they'd spent their time together only five days previously. And while spark-merge didn't always lead to spark-creation, it could occur if the participants' sparks were compatible even without a bond existing between the pair.

Ratchet did another quick sensor sweep before opening a comm link to Red Alert._ "Is it possible to get from my current coordinates directly to the repair bay via orbital bounce?"_

There was a moment of silence as the security director apparently did some calculations on his end of the link. _"It is now. I've shut down the surrounding cameras as well. I'm guessing this has something to do with your favourite flyer?"_

_"You guess correctly. If it's not too much to ask, do you think you can keep everyone out of trouble and away from there for the next half-joor?"_

_"I'll see what I can do. Fixed on your coordinates now, just let me know when you're ready."_

The medic spared a glance for Starscream, who had remained silent and still had both arms looped around the older mech securely. He apparently realized what his lover had been doing as he simply gave a quick nod and pressed as close to him as he was able; Ratchet allowed himself a small smile and dropped an affectionate kiss to the top of the younger's helm before responding to Red Alert's last statement: _"We're ready."_

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Three scans later – one of those done twice to fully confirm that the problem wasn't a simple electrical issue and the other to verify the time frame – found Ratchet seated in his office, Starscream in his lap and arms securely looped around the younger mech as they quietly discussed the situation. The one thing they were in full agreement over was the fact that the seeker was _not_ going back to the Decepticons for the time being; said seeker himself was leery on if he would _ever_ go back given the circumstances behind his leaving so quickly.

In the midst of a brief silence, as Ratchet was trying to figure out how best to explain this to his superior officers, Starscream let out a frustrated, "Damn it."

"What?" the medic asked, dermaplates quirking slightly in a faint smile; for some reason, when Starscream resorted to using human curses he found it either utterly adorable or incredibly hot, dependent upon the circumstances when the words were spoken.

"I just realized that I could have waltzed onto the bridge and shot Megatron in the face before taking off, and gotten away with it once Hook told him the results of his scans."

Ratchet shook his head, a faint snicker escaping in spite of himself. Leave it to Starscream to find the most irrelevant aspect to muse over....

"I, for one, am glad you didn't," he said, tapping his seeker's back lightly in admonishment before resuming the light petting he'd been engaged in previously. "And that you're willing to stay here for now." He didn't add that he'd be much happier about the situation if the other agreed to remain for good, but they weren't bonded and there was no way to _force_ a seeker to do anything he didn't want to.

"Mmm," Starscream agreed, resting his helm on the older mech's shoulder and sighing softly. He wasn't entirely certain of what came next, and he didn't want to rush any further decisions for the moment. After all, his life wasn't the only one that would be impacted by anything he decided to do.

Ratchet nuzzled his lover's helm gently before checking his chronometer, scowling to himself as he realized the requested half-joor of privacy was nearly over. "I guess I should quit putting it off and go inform Prime of the situation," he complained, not eager to attend to the task. "Think you can keep yourself out of trouble while I'm facing the firing squad?"

Starscream snorted lightly and unwillingly stood up when the ambulance loosened his embrace. "Who do I look like, one of those idiot Lamborghini twins? Besides, all I plan to do at the moment is crawl into the berth and pout that you have to go let the turbofox out of the bag."

"Believe me, I wish I _could_ just stay here with you," the medic said before keying in the access code to the small berth room tucked just behind his office; often when there was a severely-wounded mech in his repair bay, Ratchet used this small area to recharge without having to be too far from his patient. There was, however, enough room in the berth itself for two mechs to rest or 'face, as he had discovered three months previously when Starscream was 'vacationing' in the brig again.

The seeker gave the medic one of his small, real smiles and kissed him lightly. "Go on and let them know, lover," he said softly. "If I'm recharging when you get back, feel free to climb in with me."

Ratchet only lingered long enough to make sure that his office door was locked securely – no sense in anyone stumbling upon his seeker when the mech was in a vulnerable position – before exiting the repair bay and heading towards the main offices. It was often easy to forget that the superior officers each had a designated work area, if only because Jazz spent more time amongst the crew and Red Alert much preferred the security room to his own office space. Still, Optimus could be found in his most mornings and Prowl tended to stay close to his as it was the quietest place in the _Ark_ for him to work on tactics and calculations.

As he'd both hoped and feared, Optimus was indeed in his office; Prowl's presence was somewhat unexpected until Ratchet met the other's optics and noted the curiosity in them. Apparently Red had informed his mate of their unexpected guest and wanted to know the reason why. Lovely; hopefully Prowl would keep any teasing to a minimum.

"Got a few microns, Prime?" the medic asked as he stepped through the door.

"Of course, Ratchet," came the reply, a faint note of question in the Prime's tone as he signaled for the other to close the door behind him. "What's on your processor?"

Shooting a brief glance at Prowl, the medic steeled himself and decided to just speak as plainly as he could. "There are a couple things I need to inform you about, the first of which being that I've been... involved, you might say, with the Decepticon SIC for several months now."

Optimus managed to look stunned even with the face mask in place, both at the abrupt announcement and Prowl's lack of any true reaction. Venturing a guess, he asked, "And I'm assuming that this relationship began during Starscream's first stay in our brig?" At Ratchet's nod, Optimus turned his optics towards Prowl before adding, "Yet Red Alert somehow missed this?"

"No, sir," Prowl responded, tone betraying nothing. "Based on the recordings from the repair bay at that time, he felt there was no security risk and kept the information quiet."

And obviously the security director had been correct in his assessment, given that six months had passed and the Decepticon forces hadn't once given indication that they had inside information save for what little their spies periodically gathered. Optimus briefly considered reprimanding his CMO, but realized that Ratchet would likely ignore any orders to end the affair; if the medic was informing him of it after keeping quiet for so long, chances were that it was more than a war-time fling and any outside interference would be unappreciated at best.

Heaving a sigh through his vents, the Autobot commander said, "While I can't say that I approve of the decision on anyone's part to keep this hidden, I understand the reasoning. But you indicated that there's something else you had to tell me, Ratchet."

"They tie in together, sir," the medic replied. "Mostly because Starscream's currently in the repair bay and my tests indicate that he's carrying."

For the second time since the conversation started, Ratchet was treated to the sight of his commanding officer at a complete loss for words; it was made more satisfying by the brief flicker of optics that indicated Prowl had temporarily crashed at the news. The medic allowed himself a bout of mental laughter and decided to save their reactions to a private vid file for Starscream's amusement later. It wouldn't be the first time he shared a vid file with the seeker, but it would definitely be the tamest one yet.

In spite of the brief processor crash, Prowl was the first to recover. Unfortunately, the first comment he made was, "So does this mean we can all ignore those safe-interfacing lectures you're always giving to the troops?"

"Prowl," Optimus scolded, although he sounded as if he were still startled from the revelation. Turning his attention back to Ratchet (who looked awfully calm for a mech who'd just dropped a cluster bomb like that one), the Prime cleared his vocalizer and asked, "You're positive about this?"

"Ran the test twice myself, and Starscream had an initial scan done back at the 'con base," the medic confirmed. "I also ran a temporal analysis to determine the age of the new-spark and confirmed that spark conception was five days ago."

Optimus sighed through his vents. "And you can be certain that the new-spark isn't the result of a split or merge with someone other than yourself?" He only realized that he'd just asked a _very_ stupid question when Ratchet's optics narrowed into slits while Prowl's widened in shock.

"I'll pretend you did not just ask me if my mate" – he didn't notice the look Prowl shot his way nor his own wording – "has been 'facing anyone behind my back. And not that it's _anyone's_ business but our own, neither Starscream _nor_ myself had ever merged with someone prior to two months ago.

"As for your other question," the medic continued with a faint snarl, "were this a case of split-spark creation, any energy fluctuations would be minimal and the creator would be aware of the reasons for said fluctuations. Starscream nearly crashed from an unexpected flux, which happens when the new-spark's creators are separated by a notable distance during the first two to three orns post-conception."

Making an attempt to apologize for his faux pas, Optimus asked, "And what is his condition since you returned to the _Ark_?"

"Physically drained from the flux followed up by fleeing his own base, but other than that showing no signs of complications," Ratchet replied, giving a brief nod to indicate that he appreciated the gesture; still, he was going to remember the insult to his seeker for a _very_ long time, and made a mental note to make sure Starscream and the Prime didn't cross paths until the former was at least six orns along. That should be enough time for him to calm down and for Starscream's predicted mood swings to subside.

"So I take it that you're planning to keep the sparkling," Prowl stated casually, his curiosity peaked. Red had only indicated that Ratchet was bringing the seeker in for an exam, and he could hardly wait to find out what his bondmate's reaction to the news would be; knowing his Red, Prowl could only assume that the entire base would be sparkling-proofed within the orn and that the miscreants would be under strict _don't torque off the seeker_ protocols.

"Why the pit do you think he took off from the 'cons the astrosecond he heard the preliminary test results?" the medic responded. "I'd suggest that everyone read up on seeker programming protocols ASAP, it'll go a long way to explaining things."

Prowl gave a brief nod and made a mental note to ask Red about that programming documentation. Not many mechs knew it, but the security director and the twins were rumoured to be ground-based Vosians, and would likely already know what Ratchet was referring to without having to go through several datapads in search of information. Pit, if the twins found out there was a carrying seeker on base, for all Prowl knew they might turn out to be the mechs the security team would have to worry about the _least_.

"Thank you, Ratchet," Optimus said, noting to himself to look into the suggested readings. "I know that you would rather have kept this a private matter, but given the circumstances..."

"Exactly," the medic nodded. "And I'd be grateful if you could wait until the morning meeting to announce the situation to the rest of the crew. Now, if you'll excuse me...?"

"Dismissed." Optimus watched as his CMO fairly ran out of the office before turning to a fairly-amused Prowl. "Am I the only one worried that this is just the beginning?"

"Things are definitely going to be interesting from now on," the SIC remarked.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** Transformers © Hasbro**  
Measures of Time: **vorn = 83 years / breem = approx 10 minutes / orn = 14 days / joor = 6.5 hours / cycle = 1 day  
**Notes:** Obviously, I managed to coax my muse back out of the corner it had hidden itself in long enough to get the story updated. For the explanation on why I had to do so in the first damned place, check out my author profile for the two most-recent updates. I apologize for the delay to all of you who have been waiting patiently, and hope you enjoy!

Oh, and the rating bumped up this chapter. Starscream and Ratchet just can't keep their... hands to themselves.

* * *

While most of their human allies were under the impression that Cybertronians could "wake up" from a deep recharge quickly, the fact of the matter was that individual mechs and femmes came out of recharge in as many ways as humans themselves woke from their rest. Starscream was one of those individuals who came online somewhat slowly, audio receptors tending to activate a full twenty or so astroseconds before he would even start thinking about unshuttering his optics. Even in the depths of the Decepticons' base, he'd never quite broken the habit of doing a full audio sweep of his surroundings before confirming his location visually.

So in spite of the fact that he felt more well-rested than he had in the past few days – honestly, he probably _should_ have gotten a scan much sooner, but hindsight was perfect and Primus liked to make things interesting for his creations – the seeker took a moment to catalogue his sensory data.

The first thing he took note of was physical data – what was most likely an arm thrown loosely around his waist and the feel of warm, familiar metal beneath his own chassis – and vaguely recalled Ratchet returning after his impromptu meeting with Prime; apparently at some point after Starscream had slipped back into full recharge his lover had rearranged them with their mutual comfort in mind. He mused that he would have to thank the other properly for that. The next bit of data was from his audio sensors, the soft sounds of the ambulance's systems humming even in recharge and the faint thrum that denoted his sparkpulse drawing a small smile from the younger mech.

Finally, after listening to Ratchet's spark pulsing so close to his for almost a breem and feeling both his own spark and the tiny new-spark they'd created slowly begin to pulse in time with it, Starscream unshuttered his optics and tilted his head to peer up at his lover. The older mech was still deep in recharge, and a tiny part of the seeker admitted – if only to himself – that he could very quickly become used to onlining like this. He shifted slightly, resting his chin on the other's chestplate, and took a moment to record the image to his memory banks. It was one more argument in favour of staying indefinitely, a purely mental debate that he'd been having with himself since finding out for certain that he was carrying a new-spark. The other arguments included Ratchet's positive reaction and the fact that the other wasn't trying to force him into any immediate decisions.

Chances were pretty slagging good that he was not only going to stay the full twelve orns until the new-spark was ready for its sparkling protoform, but that he would defect and become either a neutral with Autobot affiliations or a full-fledged Autobot... most likely the former; leave playing the hero to other mechs, he was going to have a sparkling to raise.

The faint smile on his dermaplating shifted slowly to something a bit more devious, and he reached behind himself to slowly, carefully shift Ratchet's arm from where it was still resting across his lower back. The ambulance didn't react other than to shift a bit in his recharge before settling fully once again. Starscream's smirk widened a bit and he carefully slid down the older mech's chassis, watching his lover for signs of onlining as he arranged himself to rest against Ratchet's legs.

Just as until recently it had been a very long time since he'd enjoyed slow and unhurried interfacing, it had been even longer since he'd awakened from recharge with another. And the thing he'd enjoyed most about spending a full night and the morning with a lover was waking the mech or femme up.

Optics locked on the older mech's face, Starscream lightly traced his fingertips over the seams to Ratchet's interface panel before flicking the catches open one at a time. The only reaction was a subtle shift of the other's frame and a huff from his vents. The seeker snickered softly, musing that his lover – mate? He rather liked that term, even if they weren't bonded... _yet_ – was quite the sound recharger before moving his attention to Ratchet's spike housing. Stealing a final glance at the other's face, Starscream leaned down to run his glossa lightly across the cover to the housing. It took a few microns, but finally the cover slid aside and the seeker turned his focus to Ratchet's spike as it slid free.

Ratchet had been drifting between full-recharge and online for some time, and was absently cataloguing the input his sensors were sending. The seeker shifting towards the end of the berth hadn't been enough to drag him to awareness, nor was the idle teasing the mech had initiated. What pulled him instantly online, though, was the warmth and pressure that quite suddenly engulfed his spike, and he didn't bother trying to hold back the moan that escaped from his vocalizer. Starscream hummed softly in amusement, flicking his gaze up to lock with Ratchet's as he pulled away for a moment to lap the tip of his lover's spike before drawing it back in his mouth once more.

The older mech pushed himself up slightly, cooling fans kicking on as he took in all the sensory data. There was just something about watching his seeker sucking on his spike and feeling all the sensors going wild at the pressure that kicked his arousal up several degrees. He hissed slightly as Starscream's red optics lit with devious amusement followed by a sharp nip to the base of his spike, and his own optics flickered briefly when the seeker dragged his denta along the length as he pulled back.

Knowing that he was being a horrid little tease, Starscream repeated the action a few more times before sliding his mouth back to touch the pelvic plating once more and starting a low hum in his vocalizer. It was just enough to shove the older mech into overload, a sharp cry accompanying the rush of transfluid and energy that the seeker eagerly swallowed. He waited until the last tingles of electricity clicked over his glossa before pulling away to crawl back up the berth and drop a soft kiss to Ratchet's dermaplating.

"Recharge well?" he asked, the teasing smirk replaced with a tiny, pleased smile.

"Mmhmm," the ambulance replied, wrapping an arm around the slighter mech's waist. "You're obviously feeling better than when you arrived." He smiled warmly at his lover's snicker before adding, "Prime's going to announce that you're here in the meeting taking place in a couple breems. I'll slip out to the mess once it starts and grab us a couple of cubes. You'll need the extra intake for a while."

Starscream nodded and shifted until his legs were settled on either side of Ratchet's. "So, what shall we do in the meanwhile?" he asked in what would be considered an innocent manner if not for the fact that he'd retracted his interface panel covering as he spoke and was idly grinding against his lover.

"Oh," the older mech said as he caught hold of the seeker's waist and repositioned him, "I'm sure we'll think of something."

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The morning meeting was the most eventful that Jazz could remember in recent history.

Oh, sure, it started out innocently enough, until Sideswipe (who had more energy than he should after how enthusiastic he'd been in the berth the previous night, the little slagger) had looked up and noticed that one of the command team was missing. And never one to keep silent when he was curious, the Lamborghini had asked, "Hey, where's Hatchet?" loud enough for the whole room to hear.

It was a valid question, but Optimus had stopped mid-sentence to look over at Prowl, who smirked – _Prowl_, for pit's sake! – and gave no indication that he was going to help answer that question in any way shape or form. Red Alert had frowned and gone back to the datapad he'd been glued to since the triad had arrived, ignoring the room once more, and neither Jazz himself nor Ironhide had half a clue what was keeping the medic from the meeting.

After giving his SIC a look that clearly said _thank you __**so much**__ for your help_, Optimus cleared his vocalizer and replied, "Chances are he's making sure our... guest" – and here Prowl actually _snorted_ and Red Alert's dermaplating quirked into a brief grin – "is settling in."

"Is someone from Elita's team visiting?" Mirage asked, tone light and curious from his spot across the room; Jazz noted that his Ops mech was rather close to where the minis tended to converge, and that for once Cliffjumper wasn't shooting him dirty looks for what he generally perceived as an invasion of personal space.

"No," Red Alert cut in, optics still locked on the datapad in his hands. "And I don't think _guest_ is the right term, sir. I'd venture to say _defector_ at the least."

_That_ set the room buzzing, and unsurprisingly Cliffjumper's voice was heard over the din: "You mean we've got a _'con_ on base right now?!"

Once again, Optimus shot a harsh look at one of his command team. "In a manner of speaking. The former SIC of the Decepticons contacted a specific member of the command team yesterday seeking asylum for the next twelve orns."

"Twelve orns?" Ironhide asked, looking both confused that a seeker was on base and annoyed that he'd been out of the loop. "As in, close to six Earth months? Why the pit should we hide a slaggin' Decepticon for that long?"

Optimus looked to the bonded officers for help, but only got another smirk from Prowl and was utterly ignored by Red Alert (and what was so interesting about that datapad anyway?). Realizing there was no help from that quarter and that Ratchet obviously was pulling a no-show, the Prime finally huffed a sigh and replied, "According to several medical scans, Starscream is carrying a very young new-spark and is seeking asylum to ensure its survival."

"I didn't think 'cons even bothered with sparking," Sideswipe remarked in the sudden silence that descended upon the room. Sunstreaker elbowed his twin and glared at him for the fairly rude remark.

"Obviously two of them do," Tracks snorted, "or the Decepticons' pit-spawned air commander wouldn't be here right now."

"Actually," Prowl spoke up, and the slagger sounded viciously amused, "it's all Ratchet's fault. He's the other creator."

Once again silence blanketed the room, and more than a few processors could be heard crashing. Ironhide actually had to do a full reboot, as Jazz could clearly see from his spot next to the bigger mech. The twins looked torn between shock and amusement (more shock on Sunstreaker's part than amusement), Tracks had crashed completely and was slumped on the ground, and Bluestreak was utterly speechless for once.

Then: "I know I said Ratchet needed to get laid, but _damn_."

A few snickers filtered into the quiet of the room as Mirage reached over and smacked Cliffjumper on the back of the helm for the comment, looking mildly flustered. Jazz absently wondered _when_ the red mini had made that observation and why the noblemech was apparently the only one who knew about it.

Optimus sighed and rubbed at his optics. "Thank you, Prowl, for announcing the news so tactfully," he said, the sarcasm clear in his words. "In any case, I ask that you _try_ to treat Starscream as you would any defector or informant just coming to our side, and I'm sure Ratchet would appreciate it if everyone aids in monitoring him as well. It's been a very long time since any sparklings were formatted, so I doubt any of us knows what to expect."

With that, the Prime turned and exited the room, leaving the Autobots to abruptly start speculating about the when-why-and-how of Ratchet hooking up with not only a Decepticon but the slagging _SIC_ himself. Jazz made a beeline for the twins, who had their helms tilted together and were engaged in a furiously whispered conversation. Sideswipe lifted his helm and grinned brightly at the Porsche before grabbing his arm and dragging him in close to join them.

"I still say that Red should have said something to us," Sunstreaker hissed, obviously annoyed. "I'll bet anything that that slagging datapad he had his nasal plating buried in the whole meeting was a schematic of the _Ark_ and he's already prepping things for the scraplet."

"C'mon, Sunny, they only found out 'bout the new-spark yesterday," Jazz replied. "If he is prepping the base, he only just started."

"Doesn't mean he didn't know something was going on, though," Sideswipe chirped. "I just wanna know how long Hatchet's been playing berth-games with the screaming one."

Jazz shook his head before abruptly freezing. A quick snippet of a memory file came to the surface and he quickly pinged his two bondmates to send them the file. Sunstreaker drew in a sharp intake and Sideswipe's optics widened almost comically.

"You don't think—"

"It _did_ take Ratchet an awful long time to tend to a few fairly minor injuries..."

"Oh, _ew_," Sideswipe whined. "I'm never gonna be able to set foot in the repair bay again without thinking about... about..."

"Kinky 'facing using the equipment there?" Sunstreaker chimed in helpfully.

As the red Lamborghini howled and launched himself at his twin, Jazz snickered and scanned the room. Things were going to be a bit crazy for a while as the Earth-bound Autobots got used to having an ex-Decepticon in their midst, but hopefully with time they'd all adjust.

And hopefully Ratchet would warn them before the first of the mood swings struck. _That_ would be scary.

* * *

**End Notes:** Once again, thanks so much for your patience, everyone! And if you ever wonder what the hell I'm working on that's keeping me from updating over here, check out my fic journal (link is my homepage); who knows, you might find something else to read while you wait.


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